


Astronomical chances

by Jintard



Series: Tumblr Prompts [5]
Category: Sanders Sides, Thomas Sanders
Genre: Human AU, I'm Sorry, Logan is the nerd who frequents it, Nothing Explicit Happens, Patton works at a library, mentions of a couple making out, pun-alert, so many puns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-02
Updated: 2018-01-02
Packaged: 2019-02-27 09:16:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13245168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jintard/pseuds/Jintard
Summary: Tumblr Prompt:The library’s pretty empty save for you and me and OH that couple making out loudly in the shelves somewhere.





	Astronomical chances

Logan learned to read very young. He was also one of the few boys in his class that read for pleasure, who loved to sit back and enjoy the written word. His schoolwork was always good, but his essays especially got a lot of praise from his teachers. He was clear, concise, showed his sources and all in all wrote textbook perfect answers. He loved doing research and loved learning facts, whether useful or less so. The world was his oyster and he wanted to know everything he could about it.

As such, it is no wonder Logan spent most of his time in libraries. Some people joked about how a library was his version of heaven, and he would readily agree “if heaven exists, that is”. 

The current library the man was occupying was special however. It wasn’t big, nor was it the best stocked, or even the shortest distance away from his flat. By all means, for purely logical reasons, Logan should not be there. But sometimes logic took a backseat, like when Logan first saw the cute librarian.

Patton (as Logan had read on his nametag) was a very sweet guy, with a few weird quirks that Logan sometimes raised an eyebrow at. The consistently smiling man was well liked, by both children and adults. Once a week some younger kids came to the library after school to hear him read some new fantasy story to them. He had amazing recommendations for cookbooks for the parents as well, and seemed to be the confidant of every single tired mother in the neighbourhood.

When he had time to relax behind the counter, he would either read those inane children’s stories himself, or he’d actually (and this was what Logan truly had trouble comprehending) flip through dictionaries. The weird man seemed to like learning big, complicated words for no other reason than for the heck of it. Logan, damn his illogical heart, found it adorable.

As he read up on some interesting astronomy facts, Logan could not help but steal a small glance at the man. He had been coming to this library for almost a month now, yet he had barely held a conversation with Patton. They’d exchange greetings, Patton would make a few comments on his book choices or the weather or even the fact that they “have the same glasses!” Logan tried his best to answer in kind, but social interactions had never quite been his forte, and so he tended to give one-word-answers before scampering off to his nook. He knew he was not only failing at being a human, but was coming off as rude. Thankfully his standoffish nature did not deter Patton and Logan was still treated to those beautiful smiles.

Logan swallowed and quickly turned back to his book, trying not to stare.

After a few minutes of silence, he saw from the corner of his eye how Patton welcomed a couple in. It was a quiet day, and apart from Logan, the two were the only visitors that day. The librarian then took one of those completely inefficient “dusters”, that Logan knew really only moved the dust around and did nothing to actually clean anything, and started dusting off the shelves. He was slowly moving towards the nook Logan occupied, all the while smiling absentmindedly.

“Interesting book?” he asked quietly, while starting on the shelf closest to Logan. 

“Quite,” Logan nodded. Immediately he realised he was once again being rude, but Patton hardly noticed.

“Astronomy, right? Any facts I should know?” he smiled warmly. Once again it took the nerdy man by surprise by how someone could be so genuinely interested in whatever he was doing. Did he mention his social ineptness yet?

“Oh, um, well…” Logan thought for barely a second, “Did you know that shooting stars aren’t actually stars? They are usually just tiny dust particles or rocks falling through our atmosphere and they vaporize due to the heat of friction with the atmospheric gases. Earth sometimes passes through cometary o rbits. As comets travel around the Sun, they leave behind dust trails. When Earth encounters that dust, we see an increase in meteors as the particles travel through our atmosphere and are burned up. That is how we get ‘meteor showers’.”

Patton blinked a few times and for a moment Logan thought he’d once again scared someone off, but the the other man tapped his chin in thought.

“Can I still make a wish on them, though? Would it even work, since they aren’t actually stars?”

Now it was Logan’s time to blink. What a nonsensical question to ask. He opened his mouth to remind the clearly confused librarian of the fact that wishing upon stars did not actually work, when an unfamiliar sound made him stop. Patton seemed to have heard it too, and they both frowned in confusion and tilted their heads to hear better.

There it was again. Logan frowned even more, but Patton’s face suddenly flamed red.

“Oh!” he let out a surprised, high pitched breath. Logan was about to ask what the problem was, when his brain caught up with him. A couple had come in, he and Patton could hear sounds, no,  _ moans _ , from a few aisles over and Patton looked like he was about to faint from embarrassment.

“Oh…” he swallowed. He could feel his own cheeks burning up. “Um, uh, well…”

Neither one could quite meet the other’s eyes anymore. Never before had Logan felt quite as awkward, not even that time his mom had tried (in her misplaced kindness) to set him up with the guy from the corner store. And  _ that _ had been awkward.

He’d never be able to show his face here again. After something as socially awkward as this, human psychology suggested that he and Patton would never again be able to interact normally, without this experience hanging over them. No more smiles, or casual conversation (no matter how little he had actually contributed) and no more eye contact. In fact, just seeing the other would remind them of today, and that would just embarrass them both. Perhaps Logan should quit coming here.

“Gue-, guess the chances of something like this happening aren’t quite as  _ astronomical _ as previously thought.”

Logan swung his head around to gape at the still blushing librarian. Patton still looked mortified, hearing the… activities… of the couple, but he also had a sort of mischievous smile lifting the corners of his lips. Logan could not help but stare in astonishment. Did this insane man just make a  _ pun _ ?  _ Why _ ? Who  _ does _ that?

“I guess they couldn’t book a room on the moon,” he tried again. Logan however did not get the joke.

“Book-, book a room? On the-, the moon?” he tried to wrap his mind around this bizarre turn of events.

“Yes. I guess the moon was  _ full _ .”

And the sheer audacity to make such awful puns, while Logan was here feeling awkward, and the way Patton’s eyes twinkled in delight, it all made Logan feel… something. He felt his lips twitch despite himself. Perhaps it was nerves.

“I’d  _ Apollo _ -gize for these puns, but I thought an  _ astro-nut _ like you would appreciate them,” Patton giggled. At this point Logan had quite forgotten about the loud couple. He was too focused on the god-awful puns the other was forcing him to listen. This was torture, surely.

Yet… he could feel himself smiling.

“At least you’re not too  _ Sirius _ to take a joke.”

“Hah!” and Logan was gone. He started giggling, and he couldn’t stop, and god  _ why _ ? Why had that awkward, potentially traumatizing situation turned into  _ this _ ? He hated puns! He had always said so!

“ _ Sun _ , it just  _ dawned _ on me, that perhaps we should give those  _ star crossed  _ lovers some  _ space _ . Want to go grab an early lunch?”

“Yes, please,” the answer came without a second thought. Logan was really in too deep, or, perhaps as Patton put it a few months later: “over the moon”.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I have a headcanon that despite protesting against them and denying any positive feelings towards them, Logan actually really likes puns. They're just like polar bears: really good at breaking the ice.


End file.
